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Miesha Tate
Miesha Tate (born August 18, 1986), also known by her nickname of "Cupcake" is an American retired professional female mixed martial artist who competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship and is a former UFC Women's Bantamweight champion. She has fought in Strikeforce and is a former Freestyle Cage Fighting Women's Bantamweight Champion. She has also competed and won a silver medal in the FILA Grappling Championships. Early life Tate wrestled on the boys' wrestling team in high school. In 2005, she won the high school women's state championship and went on to win nationals at the World Team Trials in the 158lb division."MMA Quick Hits - Miesha Tate Interview", retrieved from SportingNews.com, URL accessed March 24, 2010 Soon after, Tate joined a mixed martial arts sport club at Central Washington University that was run by her current boyfriend and trainer, Bryan Caraway."Exclusive Interview With Miesha Tate", retrieved from MMARising.com, URL accessed March 24, 2010 MMA career Tate debuted in Mixed martial arts in 2007 at the one-night HOOKnSHOOT Women's Grand Prix. She defeated Jan Finney in the opening round, but was knocked out later in the night by a head kick from eventual tournament champion Kaitlin Young. On June 27, 2008, Tate faced Cung Le protégé Elaina Maxwell at Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Thomson. Tate moved up in weight for the fight and defeated Maxwell by unanimous Decision.http://mmajunkie.com/2008/06/strikeforce-melendez-vs-thomson-play-by-play-and-live-results/ Tate won three more times and captured the FCF Women's Bantamweight Championship by defeating Liz Carreiro at Freestyle Cage Fighting on April 4, 2009."Miesha Tate captures 135 pound title at Freestyle Cage Fighting", retrieved from PROMMANOW.com, URL accessed March 24, 2010 She returned to Strikeforce at ShoMMA 1: Evangelista vs. Aina on May 15, 2009. Tate was originally scheduled to face Kim Couture, but Couture withdrew from the fight due to undisclosed reasons and Tate was matched up against undefeated Canadian Sarah Kaufman instead."Despite opponent change, Miesha Tate comfortable with 'win-win' situation", retrieved from MMAJUNKIE.com, URL accessed March 24, 2010 In a competitive fight, Tate was defeated by unanimous Decision, but it marked the first time that Kaufman had ever lost a round or gone to a decision. Tate knocked out Sarah Oriza eight seconds into the second round at a CageSport MMA event on October 3, 2009."Miesha Tate wins impressively in Cage Sport MMA main event", retrieved from PROMMANOW.com, URL accessed March 24, 2010 She successfully defended her FCF title against Valerie Coolbaugh on January 16, 2010 at FCF 38."Miesha Tate Submits Valerie Coolbaugh At FCF 38", retrieved from MMARising.com, URL accessed March 24, 2010 Tate is scheduled to face Zoila Frausto at ShoMMA 7: Johnson vs. Mahe on March 26, 2010. A war of words developed between Tate and Frausto in the weeks leading up to the fight."Miesha Tate Ready For 'Cocky and Arrogant' Zoila Frausto", retrieved from Strikeforce.com, URL accessed March 24, 2010 She won the fight via Armbar in round 2. Tate was then scheduled to be part of the one-night Strikeforce 135-pound women's tournament on August 13, 2010 at Strikeforce Challengers: Riggs vs. Taylor. A random drawing was held on the day of the weigh-ins to determine first-round matchups and Tate faced Maiju Kujala in the opening round of the tournament. She defeated Kujala by unanimous decision after two rounds to advance to the tournament final. She then defeated Hitomi Akano by unanimous decision after three rounds to become Strikeforce Women's Bantamweight Tournament Champion. Tate was scheduled to challenge Marloes Coenen for the Strikeforce Women's Bantamweight Championship on March 5, 2011, but withdrew from the fight after suffering a knee injury in training. The two met at Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Henderson on July 30, 2011. Tate defeated Coenen via Submission (arm-triangle choke) to become the new champion. Following the fight, Tate stated, "I think I’m not in reality quite yet," Tate said shortly after winning the women’s bantamweight title. "I can’t believe that I have a belt to take home with me. I really had to dig deep those last couple rounds. Like I said, I had a tough end to my training camp, but I just feel like I went out there and I did what I needed to do and I won the fight and I’m world champion." Amidst a highly publicized rivalry, Tate lost her Strikeforce title against Ronda Rousey on March 3, 2012 in Columbus, Ohio. The fight served as the main event of Strikeforce: Tate vs. Rousey. She lost the fight via submission in the first round due to an Armbar after appearing to dislocate her elbow. Tate then faced Julie Kedzie at Strikeforce: Rousey vs. Kaufman on August 18, 2012. She defeated Kedzie by submission via Armbar in the third round. Ultimate Fighting Championship In February 2013, Tate officially joined the Ultimate Fighting Championship. The UFC announced that she would face Cat Zingano on April 13 at The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale. Prior to the fight, it was revealed that the winner of Tate vs. Zingano would receive a title shot against Ronda Rousey, who became the inaugural UFC Women's Bantamweight Champion. It was also revealed that the winner would coach against Rousey on The Ultimate Fighter 18. Despite winning the first two rounds, Tate lost in the final round by TKO. Tate argued that the stoppage was premature. The back-and-forth action earned both women a Fight of the Night bonus. On May 28, it was announced that Zingano had withdrawn as Rousey's opponent and opposing coach after suffering a knee injury which required surgery, and had been replaced by Tate. The rematch between Rousey and Tate took place at UFC 168 on December 28, 2013. After surviving the first two rounds, and escaping two submission attempts, Tate lost via Armbar in the third round. Tate faced Liz Carmouche in the co-main event at UFC on Fox: Werdum vs. Browne on April 19, 2014. She won the fight via unanimous decision, earning her first win in the UFC. Tate then faced promotion newcomer Rin Nakai at UFC Fight Night: Hunt vs. Nelson on September 20, 2014. She won the fight via unanimous decision, making Tate 2-2 in the UFC. On March 20, 2015, it was announced that Tate would face Jessica Eye in a bout on July 25, 2015 at UFC on Fox: Dillashaw vs. Barão 2. Given the significance of the fight, which was initially promoted as a top-contender bout, Tate remarked that she expected "the best Jessica Eye that anyone has ever seen," and called Eye a tough opponent. Tate won the fight by unanimous decision. In January 2016, it was announced that Tate would be the first to face against Holly Holm's title defense at UFC 196 on March 5, 2016. Tate defeated Holm via a technical submission due to a rear-naked choke in the fifth round to become the new UFC Bantamweight Champion, which made her earned her first Performance of the Night bonus award. After her victory over Holm, UFC president Dana White quickly announced that Tate's first title defense would be against Ronda Rousey at a yet-to-be-determined event later in 2016. However, on April 6, White revealed that Tate would instead fight Amanda Nunes in her first title defense at UFC 200 on July 9, 2016. In this fight, Nunes defeated Tate via a rear-naked choke hold three minutes into the first round to become the new Women's Bantamweight Champion. Tate fought Raquel Pennington at UFC 205 on November 12, 2016 and lost to Pennington via unanimous decision. After this match Tate announced her retirement from mixed martial arts. Media appearances Tate is featured in the mixed martial arts documentary Fight Life. The film is directed by indie filmmaker James Z. Feng and produced by RiLL Films.Fight Life: MMA Documentary She appeared nude in the 2013 ESPN Body Issue, and also appeared on the December 2013 cover of Fitness Gurls magazine, which labeled Tate "the most beautiful woman in MMA." Personal life Tate is currently dating fellow UFC fighter Bryan Caraway. Mixed martial arts record References External links UFC Profile Category:American mixed martial artists Category:1986 births Category:Female mixed martial artists Category:Freestyle Cage Fighting bantamweight title holders Category:Living people